Roma coach Gian Piero Gasperini expressed his frustration after the 4-4 draw with Real Madrid in the group stage of the Champions League. The match, which was decided in the last seven minutes with three home goals, left the Italian with the feeling that the Spanish team had taken advantage of an opportunity that had not been presented to them before.
Gasperini recalled that, for most of the match, Roma had maintained a solid defense and had created numerous scoring opportunities. “We had a lot of spaces to attack in the open field,” he said. "Real Madrid was desperate and brought in all the forwards they had, launching them into the attack. At that moment, they only had that weapon; there were no other alternatives." The coach recognized that the Spanish team had played effectively, although the result hurt him.
The critical moment came when Roma led 3‑1 in the 83rd minute. Gasperini noted that Real Madrid had captured the ball in a passive position and, with a quick play, managed to score three goals in seven minutes. “That's what's really annoying,” he said. “We could have done better, because in the first half we also conceded quite a few corners and we defended ourselves well, without there being any danger at any time.” He added that there was a fourth occasion in which the ball went just two centimeters away, which underlines the narrowness of the Roman defense in that section.
The Italian coach also made reference to the experience of the previous year, when Roma had suffered similar situations. “Some personality was missing,” he explained. “You had to know how to resist and maintain the advantage forcefully.” Gasperini concluded that, despite the result, the team was up to the task and that “we were far superior to them” for most of the match.
With the defeat, Roma remains in the relegation zone of the group stage, while Real Madrid advances to the next round with one more point. Roma's next challenge will be to demonstrate their ability to maintain the lead and prevent the final moments from determining the result again.